Science is all around us. We see and wonder about it in a variety of different areas of our lives. Have you ever wondered how sound reaches our ears or what is needed to make sound spread? Have you ever tried to understand the chemical reaction that occurs with air, heat and electricity? Have you thought about how many things in today’s society depend on electricity? Or what about school science projects? For many students it can be extremely frustrating trying to find that perfect experiment to display to their peers.
The Big Book of Experiments: An Encyclopedia of Science written by Brown Watson contains over 200 experiments ranging from areas of air, water, light, magnetism, electricity and chemistry. All of these areas are divided into different chapters. Each chapter begins with a description of what that area entails. The chapter Light for example, tells readers that light travels at a speed of 300, 000 km per second and that nothing in the Universe is faster. Each chapter is then divided into subsections. Going back to the chapter on light, it consists of four subsections: Rays of Light, Reflection, Colors, and Capturing an Image. The subsections include a brief description and a variety of detailed experiments.
Each of the 200 experiments contains colored photographs and a detailed list of materials that are needed to conduct the experiment. There are step by step directions on how to conduct each experiment, often giving additional pictures to show these steps. Each experiment also posses questions for the experimenter; questions that will urge them to think about the how’s and why’s of the experiment. There are also brief explanations at the end of each experiment to help clarify the reason the experiment worked the way it worked.
For anyone interested in science, conducting experiments or who has curious children, this book is a must read.